text: The coupling of ring A and ring C created the 8 membered B ring. One connection was made via a nucleophilic addition of a vinyllithium compound to an aldehyde and the other connection through a pinacol coupling reaction of two aldehydes (Scheme 4).
  A Shapiro reaction of the vinyllithium compound derived from hydrazone 4.1 with aldehyde 4.2 makes the first connection that will become the B ring. The control of stereochemistry in 4.3 is thought to be derived from the relative hindrance of the Si face in the orientation shown on the right, due to the proximity of the axial methyl group. Epoxidation with vanadyl(acetylacetate) converted alkene 4.3 to epoxide 4.4, which, upon reduction with lithium aluminium hydride, gave diol 4.5. This diol was then protected as carbonate ester 4.6. The carbonate group also served to create rigidity in the ring structure for the imminent pinacol coupling reaction. The two silyl ether groups were removed, and diol 4.7 was then oxidized to give dialdehyde 4.8 using N-methylmorpholine N-oxide in the presence of a catalytic amount of tetrapropylammonium perruthenate. In the final step of the formation of Ring B, a pinacol coupling using conditions developed by McMurry (titanium(III) chloride and a zinc/copper alloy) gave diol 4.9.